Thanksgiving is over and it's already time for the next holiday. Forget the fact that the radio stations were playing christmas tunes weeks ago and that stores were well-stocked with trees and trimmings right after Halloween! Next! Thanksgiving never gets the recognition it deserves. Maybe it's because there's not much spending involved when compared to its neighboring holidays.
I have a love/loathe relationship with this time of year. I love the twinkly lights, the vacation and family time, and the white peppermint mochas at Starbucks. I loathe the endless hustle and bustle and self-inflicted stress of getting the "right" gifts.
After running around for a week, gearing up for the next holiday I realized (yet again) the need to slow down. You know, smell the roses? Relax. Unwind. Be thankful.
Here's my belated "What I'm thankful for" list:
Loving family
Supportive and fun friends
Family pets
Shelter from the cold
Abundance of food
Access to affordable and quality healthcare (when I'm thankful, I'm thorough!)
Good doctors
Health; Able-body
Employment
The opportunity to have traveled this year
My iPod
And just in case I've missed anything, I'm starting a daily gratitute journal (no worries, I won't be recording it here!). I think it will be helpful in slowing down and appreciating what I have. So often we strive, hope and sometimes fixate on things that are out of our control and reach. I don't always recognize what I've got. And I don't want to have regrets later, having missed an opportunity to appreciate something when I had it.
"Be thankful for what you have: you'll end up having more. If you concentrate on the things you don't have you will never have enough." Oprah
